Charitable ‘giving trees’ have returned to John Lewis and Waitrose stores this Christmas, as the John Lewis Partnership hopes to raise more funds for its charitable employment initiative programme Building Happier Futures.
The freestanding Christmas tree-based format – which has also been used by Morrisons – enables customers to select a donation tag, which is then scanned when they pay for their shopping.
Amounts range from £2 to £25, with all funds split between JLP’s Building Happier Futures charity partners: Action for Children, Who Cares? Scotland and Home-Start UK.
The flagship programme first launched in October 2022, with the focus of helping care leavers find better employment opportunities.
JLP customers donated more than £600,000 via in-store giving trees last year, which helped the retailer raise £1.1m overall for the initiative.
“Our ambition to build happier futures for care experienced people is at the very heart of our purpose,” said JLP sustainability ethics lead Lindsey Crompton.
“We’re so grateful that our thoughtful customers care as greatly about this as we do, helping to generate vital funds this Christmas to support young people’s lives for the better.”
Customers can also donate when they complete an online Waitrose shop, or via the John Lewis website.
The initiative is just one way Waitrose, and the wider John Lewis Partnership, is hoping to tap into the generosity of customers this Christmas.
The supermarket has pledged to donate £100,000 worth of sales of its Christmas Chocolate Yule Log towards the Building Happier Futures programme this year.
The retailer will also donate £200,000 from the sales of John Lewis charity Christmas cards, which will be split between WWF, the John Lewis Foundation and food poverty charity The Trussell Trust.
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